This invention is in the field of shoe covering cushioning devices for the purpose of providing comfort to the wearer.
Considerable discomfort can be experienced by persons standing, walking or running on hard surfaces for extended periods of time. The experience is not only capable of producing extreme discomfort, but can also result in extreme fatigue, shin splints or similar afflictions.
It has already been proposed to provide shoe covering devices for various purposes, none of which known to applicant, however, are for the purpose of providing comfort. See, for example, the patent to Bradley, U.S. Pat. No. 70,157, which shows a device to be tied over a shoe to provide gripping devices for preventing slipping on ice. The patent to McKinnley, U.S. Pat. No. 1,663,381, discloses a device to be tied over a shoe to protect the shoe from damage. The patent to Whitley, U.S. Pat. No. 2,246,562, likewise shows a device to be laced over a shoe to provide the proper surface under the sole for bowling. However, none of the above patents suggest or disclose cushioning material to provide comfort to the wearer. Each of their devices includes a lower surface comprising a single layer or sheet of material.
The British patent to Neumark, U.K. Pat. No. 1,156,907, shows a device in the nature of an overshoe for use by parachutists and provides a thick slab of foam rubber or plastic material under the shoe sole and heel for the purpose of absorbing shocks upon landing. However, the cushioning material is a single layer and would be inappropriate for use in the manner contemplated for the present invention.